Best of AU 2026 Awards: Top-Rated Classes and Speakers
Every year, Autodesk University (AU) brings together industry experts and innovators to share knowledge, spark new ideas, and inspire better ways to design and make.
Now, it's time to celebrate the Best of AU 2026! Based on attendee feedback, we're recognizing the top-rated classes across five industry and topic categories:
- Architecture, Engineering, Construction, & Operation (AECO)
- Design & Manufacturing (D&M)
- Cross-Industry
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Media & Entertainment (M&E)
New this year, we're also introducing three individual speaker awards to recognize exceptional contributions:
Rising Star: Celebrating an outstanding first-time AU speaker.
Most Impactful: Recognizing the speaker whose session received the highest rating for helping attendees become more effective in their work.
Audience Favorite: Honoring the speaker whose session received the highest rating for attendee recommendations.
Winners were selected based on attendee survey ratings and feedback. Eligible sessions also had to meet established criteria, including timely presentation submission and minimum attendance and survey response thresholds.
Congratulations to all our Best of AU 2026 winners! Your passion and expertise continue to inspire our community and shape the future of design and make.
Top-Rated Classes for AECO
AutoCAD and Autodesk Forma: A CAD Manager's Playbook for Connected Project Data
- Primary speaker: Amarjeet Sonkar
- Co-speaker: Damian Willcox
Tangled Up in Blue: Untangling a ProjectWise Migration to Autodesk Forma
- Primary speaker: Andy Bosch
- Co-speaker: Sean Hulbert
Get the Most Out of the Drainage Tools in Civil 3D
- Primary speaker: Brian Hailey (Expert Elite)
Building an Industry-Class Electrical Subcontractor Revit Template
- Primary speaker: Derek Renn
Technical Adoption of XR in Construction: Connecting VR, AR, and Autodesk Forma Workflows
- Primary speaker: Gary Cowan (Expert Elite)
Better Together: Drainage Design Best Practices with InfoDrainage and Civil 3D
- Primary speaker: Hunter Sparks
- Co-speaker: AJ Czubai (New AU speaker)
End-to-End Drainage Design with Autodesk Forma, InfoDrainage, and Civil 3D
- Primary speaker: Javier Soto (New AU speaker)
- Co-speaker: Daniel'le DeVoss
Unleashing Dynamo with Autodesk Assistant and MCP: From Intent to Inspectable Graphs
- Primary speaker: JT Pierson
- Co-speaker: Achintya Bhat
IFC'd Around and Found Out: Model-Based Quantity Takeoffs for Linear Civil Projects
- Primary speaker: Kyle Field (New AU speaker)
- Co-speaker: Joshua Boardman (New AU speaker)
- Primary speaker: Deepak Maini
When BIM and GIS Stay Connected: Esri and Autodesk's Path to True Cloud Interoperability
- Primary speaker: Nora Nonov
- Co-speaker: Michael Davidson
Automation API: The Execution Engine for Autodesk at Scale
- Primary speaker: Rami Kuret (New AU speaker)
- Co-speaker: Sualp Ozel
Level Up Your Corridors: Unlocking Advanced Civil 3D Modeling Techniques
- Primary speaker: Shelby L Smith (Expert Elite)
- Co-speaker: Gil Cordle (Expert Elite)
30 Autodesk Forma Features You Should Be Using But Probably Aren't
- Primary speaker: Shir Rustici (Expert Elite)
- Co-speaker: Jonathan Hand
Top-Rated Classes for Design & Manufacturing (D&M)
Scaling iLogic Architecture Without Chaos
- Primary speaker: Brandon Bibelhauser (New AU speaker)
The Truth Is Out There, but So Is the Nonsense: AI Tips and Tricks for iLogic and the Inventor API
- Primary speaker: Curtis Waguespack (Expert Elite)
AutoCAD Electrical Works Once You Tell It How
- Primary speaker: Melissa Vrobel
- Co-speaker: Luke Van Hecke (New AU speaker)
Top-Rated Classes for Cross Industry
Strengthening Your Core: Working with AutoCAD Core Console
- Primary speaker: Matt Miyamoto (New AU speaker)
AI: A Practical Guide to Implementation and Risk Management
- Primary speaker: May Winfield
Top-Rated Classes for AI
Engineering Copilot: Real AI Workflows for Vault, BOMs, and Manufacturing Data
- Primary speaker: Christian Gessner
- Co-speaker: Tyler Warner
Don't Wait, Non-Revit Developers! Create Your Own Revit Add-Ins Using AI and the Revit API.
- Primary speaker: Marcello Sgambelluri (Expert Elite)
Top-Rated Class for Media & Entertainment (M&E)
Hand-Key Gameplay Animation Workflow Using Autodesk Maya and Flow Studio
- Primary speaker: Alex Ferreira Simoes
AU Rising Star
From Revit Stills to Stories: AI Video Workflows for Architectural Communication
- Primary speaker: Qian Huang (New AU speaker)
AU Most Impactful
Reliable Techniques for Complex Drawings and Detailing in Inventor
- Primary speaker: Paul Munford
AU Audience Favorite
From Content to Control: Structuring MEP BIM Production with Content Catalog
- Primary speaker: Florencia Kossman (New AU speaker)
- Co-speaker: Valentín David
